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| Art comes in different mediums. Handmade bead embroidered necklace (left) and it' design illustrated with coloured pencils (right) |
Alzheimer’s is a
progressive disease that affects a person’s memory and cognitive skills. More
than thirty-five million people, and rising, suffer from this disease
worldwide. As the stages of the disease advances in a person’s brain, they will
ultimately need taking care of. The ability to communicate, remember, and even
body functions travel a path of gradual loss, until the path ends and they can
lose no more.
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| Sculpture by artist Steph Lopez. Displayed at Pinto Gallery Antipolo, Rizal |
The best centers established for research and treatment of
Alzheimer’s can be found in the United States and Western Europe. These places
are now employing the use of creativity and the arts as a means to combat the
disease. Studies have shown that upon the onset of Alzheimer’s, parts of the
brain responsible for making new memories are the first thing affected. The Parietal lobe, responsible for our skills
in the creative arts such as painting, music, and literature, is the last to
go. In almost any form or medium, the act of expressing creativity through art
stimulates the Parietal Lobe.
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| Rated PG Art Exhibit featuring her paintings. |
According to art experts, when patients suffering from
Alzheimer’s are shown a work of art, somehow that medium says something to
them. It communicates to them through non-verbal ways. It’s as though they are
speaking a language of the mind, something to do with the intricacies of scale,
color, and vibrancy. Somehow, they begin to have a dialogue with that
particular work of art. Alzheimer’s varies on a case-to-case basis, but the
creative arts bypasses limitations brought about by disease and seems to directly
affect our imaginations. People still
have imaginations intact all the way to the very, very end of Alzheimer’s.
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| The different forms of creative art converge through imagination and creativity. Background artwork by Nikki Valenzuela (Instagram: @nikki_ocean) |
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| Makeup by Nikki Valenzuela (Instagram: @nikki_ocean). Hairpiece handmade by Steph Lopez of Flow |
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| Photography is a craft perfected through knowledge, skill, and experience. Photography session with Carlo Cayabyab |
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| Film photography by Steve Calma (Instagram @sleepsurfer). Fashion Styling by Palamuti |
As a practitioner of art in the form of handmade accessory
making, my insight on the matter is, people with Alzheimer’s are at the extremes
of a consequence of life decisions. There is no known cause for the
disease. But beyond medical research and
studies, there is a disease that BEGINS when we come to accept that performing dull,
repetitive, and monotonous tasks are the forefront of our lives. It is akin to
a student valuing advancement more than the joy learning. Maybe it’s the price that needs to be paid for
forsaking things we truly value, what make us unique, what makes us who we are.
So never stop dreaming and never stop being creative. The arts are a balm that
soothes and heals our souls in a world where many are destined to be broken.
Keeping it real. - PJV
